Angeline Oscar Portur or, the Battle of Godric's
by sbdrag
Summary: Lions / Angeline is back! Unfortunately, someone doesn't seem to want her back. Being attacked at her Great Aunt's house, she moves to Mr. Riley's home. While things seem to settle down, Angeline doesn't think this is the end. And, as she returns to Hogwarts, she finds out she is horribly correct. OC fic
1. Chapter 1

Angeline Oscar Portur; Or, the Battle of Godric's Lions

Chapter 1, In Which Angeline Moves to London

Dear Angeline,

Hope you're having fun with your aunt. Things have been crazy as usual. Da tricked uncle Ron into being a test subject for his latest invention: long lasting fire-drops. They look like chocolate, but they're really spelled so you breathe fire for about an hour. Well, they're only supposed to last an hour. Da's batch must have been too strong, cause Uncle was breathing fire and curses for four hours straight. And it looks like it had the same effect as spicy food to taste, which Da was trying to get rid of. Guess it didn't work. Mum was furious; I thought she'd bought a howler when we got home. You should have heard her. I think banshee's in her blood, is the problem. She and Da have been arguing more lately, but they always make up, so I guess it's okay. Besides, Mum wasn't half as bad as Gram was. And she did send a howler. Or five. Make that six, there's another one now. Sorry, can't think with the holwing, write you again soon.

Fred

Angeline sat on the front porch of her aunt's house, petting Fred's owl, a tawny named Clippers. The letter had just arrived, the eighth of such she had received since leaving Hogwarts. She always read them straight off, brought fed whoever's owl it was that had brought the letter (which was why Clippers was still cooing under her finger preening) and then prepared her response.

At the conclusion of the year, she had returned to America with her great aunt. The house, however, had much changed since she'd left. While at Hogwarts, her aunt had written of how Mr. Riley had started helping around the house. It had been something of an understatement.

Satchel Riley had had the house repaired to its complete state, and had used enlargement spells to expand the narrow building to twice if not thrice its original width. Now the halls and rooms were spacious rather than narrow, and meticulously cleaned and polished. All the old fixings, a small chandelier, a great grandfather clock, and various other objects, had been brought down from the attic and restored to the rooms of the house. Aunt Marinthana's room was moved to the first floor, and Mr. Riley visited nearly every day (except for when Ministry duties kept him away). There were also two of the man's house elves left behind, to tend to matters in his stead.

"Mistress Angeline, supper's nearly ready, marm," Sarky, one of such house elves, had appeared in the doorway. Angeline nodded, folding Fred's letter and putting it back in its envelope.

"Of course. I will be there after I talk with Rochester," she said, looking to the little elf. Sarky bobbed her head.

"Very good, marm. Shall I see to the owl, marm?" she asked.

"If you would," Angeline said, leaving Clippers in the care of the house elf. The girl hopped down the stairs, then made her way into the woods. Her brother had, of course, been returned to the woods by her aunt's house, although there were very stringent wards now in place to ensure no one saw the dragon who shouldn't.

"Good evening, Angie," Rochester said. "Any mail for me?"

"I am afraid not," the girl said, taking a seat on a rock. The dragon sighed, resettling himself. Rochester and Scorpius had kept up their own correspondence over the summer, with Angeline acting as the go between. Although Scorpius's letters were spelled to read themselves, Rochester's replies needed to be written by his sister. "I did receive a letter from Fred, however."

"Ah, and what happened this time?" Rochester asked. Angeline rolled her eyes.

"Mr. Weasley made some kind of potion that makes one breath fire and used it on Fred's uncle," she said. Rochester snorted.

"I'm sure his Mum was furious," he said. Angeline shrugged.

"It was childish," she said. "Is breathing fire really all that grand?"

"I like it well enough," Rochester replied. "But, I haven't known any different, so I don't think I really qualify to answer that."

"I suppose that is true enough," Angeline said.

"Not that Silvermane will take our word for it," Rochester said, a glint of mischief in his eyes. Angeline rolled her eyes. The new Magical Creatures Professor had sent Angeline letters as well, all questions about her brother and his habits.

"I still do not see why he does not simply ask you, rather than me," the girl said. Rochester chuckled.

"Some people have more problems with the dragon bit than others," he said. Angeline opened her mouth to reply, but suddenly her brother's head popped up to its full height. "Is that smoke?"

Angeline jumped to her feet, looking towards the house. From over the tops of the trees, she could just barely see a trail of smoke. The girl felt her stomach drop.

Without a word, she dropped her letter, tearing through the familiar woods in her haste to reach the house. As she got closer, she began hearing a lots bangs and sparks, as well as other sounds. When she arrived, she stopped in her tracks. There was a giant hole in the front of the house, as well as countless smaller holes and scorch marks. Someone in a red robe stood in front of the house, wand pointed at another person in a black robe. Angeline watched as the pair threw magic at each other, unable to move from the cover of the woods. The girl didn't notice when a hand holding a wand appeared next to her.

"Locomotor mortis," Angeline jumped as the man spoke next to her, looking back at him. He also wore a red robe, the cowl covering more than half his face. All Angeline could see was his black beard and a strange coat of arms on a pendant before the man apparated. Then she looked back to the house. The other red robe had disappeared, the man in the black robe along with them.

Finally, the girl ran forward, jumping through the hall and straight to her aunt's room.

"Angeline, what happened, dear? You look pale," the old woman, looking rather pale herself, was struggling to sit up. Angeline breathed a sigh of relief.

"I… I have no idea, Aunt," she said, walking forward to help her aunt.

When Mr. Riley showed up a few moments later, Angeline told them what she had seen. The wizened old man had stroked his tufty beard thoughtfully before he came to a decision.

"This house isn't safe," he said. "You, my dear, have attracted too much attention of the wrong sort, and the wards can't keep up with it."

"What are you proposing, Satchel?" Aunt Marinthana asked.

"Well," the man said. "I do have a townhouse in London, and, as I am the only current resident…"

"What about Rochester?" Angeline asked. Mr. Riley sighed. He had forgotten about the dragon. Angeline jumped to her feet. "I need to tell him what happened."

"Go on," Riley sad. "We'll sort this out."

Angeline ran out of the room. Rochester was waiting nearby, tail twitching anxiously until his sister explained all that had transpired. Then he started growling, smoke pouring from his mouth.

"Who… how dare they…" he seemed unable to form a complete thought. His wings twitched; he wanted to fly, but the Ministry had forbidden it.

"It will be alright. No one was hurt," Angeline said, thinking about the red robed man and his companion. Rochester growled.

"That doesn't make it alright," he said, fighting to calm down.

"Angeline? Ah, here you are."

"Ms. Kimberlyn?" Angeline asked, turning as the woman strode up to her. Zavanna smiled. She was not her usual trim self; her bun was messy and loose, and she was dressed in slightly crumpled robes, as if she had slept in them. Her eyes, however, were sharp as ever.

"Satchal floo'ed. Are you alright?"

"I am fine. Why did Mr. Riley floo you?" Angeline replied. Ms. Kimberlyn chuckled.

"Well, he wanted to ask me if I could give your brother a place to stay," she said. "You see, my family owns a large estate, and you, of course, would be able to come and go as you please. Naturally, the choice is Rochester's."

"I see," Angeline said. She looked up at her brother.

"What's this about leaving?" Rochester asked.

"Mr. Riley thinks it would be best to leave this house, since his London house has better magical protections."

"Oh. Well… I suppose he has a point…" Rochester rose his head, looking away. Angeline frowned, knowing this was hard on him. When she had been at Hogwarts, they had spent considerably less time together. Now, even when school was out they wouldn't be spending much time together.

"Which is why he called me over," Ms. Kimberlyn interrupted suddenly. The woman smiled as Angeline and Rochester looked at her. "Like I said, I have the room to put your brother up, and you can just floo in whenever you like. I mean, I'm the only one living there, so you won't be bothering anyone."

"… that sounds.. nice," Rochester decided. Angeline looked up at him.

"Are you sure?" she asked. Rochester sighed, lowering his head to be eye-level with his sister. He'd grown another two feet since leaving Hogwarts.

"I'll miss you like crazy," he said. "But I would rather you were safe."

Angeline sighed. She turned to Ms. Kimberlyn.

"Alright," she said. Zavanna sighed, giving the girl's shoulder a gentle squeeze.

"It'll be alright," she said softly. "You'll see."

Angeline certainly hoped so.

"Here we are, Mistress," Sarky said, showing Angeline to a small room in the Riley home. She blinked. It was obviously a girl's room; the small four-poster had curtains of damask silk, the blanket pastel pink. The wood was a light cherry, the floor a rich mahogany. There was a white vanity next to the bed, a hope chest with a large pink doily draped on top at the foot. The window ledge was low and wide, with variously pink shades pillows in one corner. There was a white wardrobe across from the bed, and a large earthware pot of pink geraniums sitting next to it. The girl sniffed.

"Whose room was this?" she asked, spying her suitcases next to the door. Sarky curtseyed.

"Before you, marm, it belonged to Master Satchal's daughter," the house elf said. Angeline blinked.

"I was not aware he had a daughter," she said. Sarky wrung her wrists.

"It was a long time ago, marm," she said. Angeline nodded her understanding.

"Thank you, Sarky. That will be all," she said. Sarky nodded, then curtseyed again before she left. Angeline took another look around the room. She wondered what had happened to Mr. Riley's daughter, but now was not the time to ask. Lifting one of her bags unto the bed and opening the wardrobe, she began unpacking.

She was halfway through when there was a sudden commotion in the hall, and as Angeline turned Veronika burst into the room, Fred a step behind her.

"Angeline!" Veronika squealed, pulling the older girl into a tight embrace. Angeline gentle pried her off, finding it hard to breath.

"Veronika, it is good to see you," Angeline said. She looked around to her best friend. "And you as well, Fred."

"Yeah, yeah," he said, plopping onto the bed and looking around. "Not really your taste, is it?"

"I think it's adorable!" Veronika said. Angeline sighed.

"It is a rather large amount of pink," she said neutrally. "And how did you two know I was here?"

"Ms. Kimberlyn told us when she was in the shop earlier," Fred said. "So-"

"We came to kidnap you!' Veronika said, grinning wildly. Angeline cocked a brow.

"Pardon me?"

"Come on," Veronika said, pulling Angeline by the wrist. "Let's go have fun! We haven't hung out in forever!"

"Veronika, please, I have not finished unpacking," Angeline said. Fred sighed, standing.

"She's just excited about the new Minstrel May book," he said, following as Veronika pulled the older girl through the house. Angeline looked back at him.

"Who?" she asked. Fred shrugged.

"Some romance novelist. Da says her stuff is hilarious, and Uncle Ron and Aunt Moine can't stand it," he said. "Neither can Mum. She says it's all trash."

"But it's so funny!" Veronika said, pulling Angeline out the door, leaving the girl barely enough time to wave to Mr. Riley and her Aunt on the way out. "It's horribly fantastic!"

"What do you mean?" Angeline asked. Veronika giggled.

"The books are horrible. But they're so bad, it's funny; especially since Minstrel's gotten so bloody popular," she said. Angeline looked at Fred, who shrugged.

"So… you like them because they are poorly written?" she asked, finally pulling her wrist from the taller girl's grip. Veronika giggled again, nodding. "Preposterous."

"You know, I don't get it either, but at least she knows they're bad, yeah?" Fred said, Veronika rambling in the background a few steps ahead. Angeline shrugged.

"I suppose," she said. "… is everything alright?"

"What? Yeah, of course," Fred said. Angeline bit the inside of her cheek then decided not to ask further.

"Good," she said, then turned to watch Veronika practically skip along. She had to admit, although she missed her aunt's house, and wished her brother were near, it was good to be with her friends again. It felt like… home.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2, In Which Angeline Visits Fortress Kimberlyn

It took a week before Angeline and her aunt were settled in Mr. Riley's townhouse. Mostly, at least in Angeline's case, due to the frequent visits of Fred and Veronika. Just when she was in the middle of unpacking, one or both of her friends would arrive to whisk her away. Most of the time they spent wandering around Diagon alley, though they would also fool around in Weasley's Wizard Wheezes. Well, Fred and Veronika fooled around. Angeline watched (unless she was pulled in, usually in a most irritable fashion).

At the end of that first week, Angeline stared in the mirror of her vanity and sighed. She was exhausted, which she found odd since she was used to more physical activity than she was getting recently. However, she was not accustomed to so much social interaction, and it was that which tired her. Not that the girl realized it.

At a soft knocking at her window, Angeline flinched. She turned to see northern hawk owl at her window, a letter in its beak. Getting up swiftly, she unlatched the window and let the owl hop in before shutting away the evening chill. She scratched the owl's head lightly as she took the green envelope from him.

"Thank you, Adonis," she said. The owl cooed, leaning into her touch as she read her brother's name on the envelope in neat silver script. Brutus, resting on a stand that had been set up next to the wardrobe, gave a low hoot. Angeline blinked and looked up at him. She tilted her head and arched a brow. Brutus merely shifted position and began preening himself. Angeline rolled her eyes.

"I'll bring you something too, you impossible owl," she said, having Adonis hop onto her arm as she left the room. Brutus ignored her, but she knew he heard her.

After running down to the kitchen and retrieving a snack for both Adonis and Brutus, Angeline sat at the vanity, tapping the envelope under her fingers. She hadn't visited her brother yet, and felt somewhat ashamed of herself. As much respect for Ms. Kimberlyn as she had, she didn't know if her brother was happy on her lands.

Putting the envelope in a drawer, she resolved she would go first thing in the morning.

This turned out to be more difficult then she had assumed. When she brought the subject up to Mr. Riley, he'd nodded and asked her to hold on a moment. He'd floo'ed the estate, then returned to tell Angeline that Ms. Kimberlyn had asked her to wait until ten to show up. Angeline was perfectly content with this, as it was only three hours from the current time. In that time, Veronika and Fred had arrived. When she had told them her plans, Veronika had insisted upon coming as well. Fred was reluctant, but said he was going as well.

It was fifteen minutes before they were to leave, and the three waited patiently or not so patiently in the drawing room as their natures warranted.

"What's with the letter?" Fred asked, noticing Scorpius's letter in Angeline's hand. Angeline looked up from her book.

"It's from Scorpius," she said.

"Malfoy writes you?" Fred asked, lip curling in a sneer. Angeline tilted her head.

"He writes Rochester," she said, making Fred blink. "They're rather good friends."

"Is that why you decided you needed to go today?" Veronika asked, playing with various knick-knacks around the room. Angeline looked over at her, then returned to her book.

"It made the issue more urgent, yes," she said evenly. Fred snorted, rolling his eyes. He looked bored, staring listlessly out the window. Veronika wandered over and tried to look at the page Angeline was reading.

"What book is that?" she asked. Angeline flipped the page without looking up.

"Jane Eyre," she said. Veronika tilted her head.

"Is it good?" she asked. Angeline smiled slightly.

"It is my favorite book," she said. Veronika paused a moment, then laughed and flopped down in one of the gray wingback chairs in the room.

"I'll have to give it a go, then," she said, grinning. Angeline looked up at her curiously, but said nothing.

"Alright, it's time to leave," Mr. Riley said, hobbling into the room with one of the house elves trailing behind him. The elf was carrying a plain wooden box on a pillow. Angeline and Veronika stood, the former placing her book on a small table. Fred wandered over from the window.

"Is it a portkey?" he asked. Mr. Riley chuckled.

"Very astute, boy," he said. Then he nodded. "It is indeed. Now, make sure to grab it at the same time."

"Why can't we just floo over?" Veronika asked. Fred looked at her like she was an idiot.

"What is a portkey?" Angeline said. Fred sighed.

"It lets you travel somewhere instantly," he said.

"Instantaneously," Angeline corrected. Fred held out his arms, but said nothing in response to it.

"Anyways, we all have to touch it together or it'll only take the first person," he said. Angeline nodded.

"On the count of three, then?" she asked. Fred shrugged. The three stood around the portkey, and Fred counted to three for them.

Angeline flinched as the world lurched in her vision, but almost before she had time to notice it stopped. The three young adults looked around in amazement.

They were in a large ballroom. There were double doors on one side, and a grand staircase on the other The walls were filled with displays of items once belonging to famous witches and wizards, as well as portraits, each with its own plaque. There was an impossibly large crystal chandelier hanging from the ceiling, and cloths spreading from its fixture outwards. Above the grand staircase was a life size portrait of what appeared to be a day room, with a table and four chairs. But there was only one, unmoving man in the portrait, standing and staring out at the viewer. A large man with long, fiery red hair and a beard to match, and intense green eyes.

"Welcome to Fortress Kimberlyn!"

The trio jumped in surprise. In their wonder, they hadn't noticed Zavanna at the top of the staircase. The woman had her hair pulled back loosely, flowing red and gray robes billowing about her as she trotted down the stairs to meet them. She smiled brightly at them.

"Good morning, Ms. Kimberlyn," Angeline said. The woman laughed.

"Good morning Angeline," she said. "Fred, Veronika. And welcome, once again."

"I didn't know you lived in a castle!" Veronika practically squealed, eyes shining. Ms. Kimberlyn chuckled.

"It's a fortress, actually. Lord Kimberlyn, the founder, was a man of practical thought. Touches like the ballroom were added later," she said, indicating they should follow as she walked.

"Was that a portrait of Godric Gfyffindor?" Fred asked, looking over his shoulder. Zavanna sighed.

"It is indeed. Unfortunately, it's been sealed for centuries, so we can't learn anything from the man," she said.

"Why is it here?" Fred asked, trotting to keep up. Zavanna walked at a brisk pace, moving through various hallways with the ease of long practice.

"Probably because Lord Kimberlyn the first married Godric's sister," she said. Fred blinked.

"I didn't know about that," he said. Zavanna shrugged.

"Though it's said there was no love lost between Godric and Katherine, Lord Kimberlyn was a muggle, so it's not widely advertised," she said.

"Is that so?" Fred asked, but he didn't receive an answer. At that moment, they came to a small door, which Ms. Kimberlyn flung wide. Daylight flooded the small space, and the small group squinted as they stepped outside.

"Here we are, as promised, Master Grayheart," Zavanna said, grinning up at eh dragon. Rochester snorted and rolled his eyes. Then he looked at the others.

"Good morning," he said. Angeline strode right up to him, Veronika a step behind.

"Good morning, brother. How are you?" she asked, putting her hands behind her back. Rochester laughed.

"I'm excellent, dear sister. It's quite lovely here, I can even fly due to all the wards set in place," he said. "And I already saw the letter, so you might as well bring it out."

"Good morning, Rocky!" Veronika called up. The dragon leaned his head down to press his nuzzle gently against the blonde's forehead, then turned to bump his sister's torso affectionately. Angeline rolled her eyes.

"Here is your letter. Shall I open it now, or would you prefer to wait?" she asked. Rochester sighed, debating a moment.

"Now is fine as anytime I suppose," he drawled, shifting to lay on his side. Ms. Kimberlyn seemed to have disappeared, and Fred hung back from the others, watching warily. Angeline nodded, and, without further ado, broke the silver seal on the back.

"Dear Rochester," the letter began in Scorpius's cracking voice, "Hope you're well. Heard about what happened at the house, but I'm glad to know you're all ok. Don't beat yourself up about not being able to stop it; there was nothing you could do even if you right there, and besides, everything turned out well, didn't it?"

"Isn't he cheery?" Fred said. Veronika shushed him and Angeline gave him a look. He sighed and rolled his eyes.

"Anyways, it's the same old routine over here. Dad's away on another Auror mission, won't be back until a week before school starts. It'll be good to hang out again. I'll write again soon, and if you see Weasley, do try to be a pain for me, would you?"

"Bloody git…" Fred's sentence tapered off into mumbling that the girls and dragon ignored.

"Until next time, Scorpius Malfoy."

"What was that? Some kind of love letter?" Fred asked. "Ow!"

"Baka!" Veronika said. "Don't be an arse."

"What the hell does that even mean?" Fred asked. Rochester chuckled, making Fred flinch.

"You two are as lively as always," he said, rolling back onto his stomach. "But was that a real word?"

"It's Japanese," Angeline said. Veronika jumped in then.

"It means idiot," she said. "Guess staying with Haha over the summer rubbed off a bit."

"Staying with who?" Fred asked.

"My mother," Veronika said. The redhead threw up his hands in disbelief.

"Who calls their mother Haha?" he asked. Veronika pouted and glared.

"I do," she said. "It's a Japanese thing, ba-ka."

"Oh, bloody hell!" Fred said, turning to storm off a ways. Angeline watched after him a moment, a calculating look in her eyes.

"Can you believe him?" Veronika huffed, crossing her arms.

"He's not usually that bad…" Rochester said. Angeline didn't say anything, and after a moment, calmly walked over to him. He was muttering to himself, and flinched when Angeline put a hand on his shoulder.

"You should apologize to Veronika," she said. Fred whirled on her, fire in his eyes.

"Why? She-"

"Fred," Angeline said, and the way in which said it made him stop. She gave him a serious look. "You should go apologize."

"…argh! Bloody… gah… fine!" the boy said, and stomped back to Veronika and Rochester. "I'm sorry."

"You could at least try to mean it," Veronika said, glaring. Angeline walked up as well, and Fred sighed. He forced himself to calm down before he spoke next.

"I'm sorry, alright? I… ugh, I'm just a little irritated today," he said. Veronika debated a moment, then sighed softly.

"Okay, apology accepted," she said. "But you shouldn't take things out on other people."

"Yeah, yeah…" Fred said, turning away. "I'll wait for you guys inside."

"But-" Veronika said, but Angeline stopped her.

"It's okay. Let him go," she said. Veronika looked pained, but she sighed and nodded. Rochester regarded Angeline with a serious look.

"You know what this is about, don't you?" he asked. Angeline looked up at him.

"I have an idea," she said. "But I don't want to confront him."

"What do you mean? Is he okay?" Veronika asked, grabbing Angeline's hands in earnest.

"… I do apologize, it is not my place to say," Angeline said, pulling from Veronika's grip. The blonde looked hurt.

"Why not? He's my friend, too," she asked. Angeline sighed.

"I am sorry," she said. "It's a personal problem."

"Oh… oh, I see," Veronika said. She gave Angeline a serious look. "He didn't… tell you, did he?"

"Like I said, I only have an idea," she said. Veronika sighed.

"I wish we could help…"

"Well this has been a cheerful visit," Rochester said. Angeline looked at him and raised a brow.

"Do not try to blame me," she said. Rochester scoffed.

"Perish the thought," he said. "Clearly, this was no one's fault but my own, for being separated for so long…!"

"Would you like to write a reply letter now, or shoulder I come back at a later time?" Angeline asked. Rochester sighed and rolled his eyes. He leaned down to be eye to eye with his sister.

"It's fine. You worry about your friends, I understand," he said. Angeline put a hand between his eye ridges.

"Thank you, brother," she said. Rochester rose.

"Besides, we will see each other soon enough, won't we?" he asked. Angeline smiled a little.

"Of course," she said, and turned. "Come on, Veronika."

"What? But we only just got here!" she said, following none the less.

"And we can visit again," Angeline said, nearly running into Ms. Kimberlyn.

"Ah, there you two are!" the woman said, Fred behind her. "I'm sorry, but some unexpected business came up and-"

"I understand. We were about to leave, anyway," Angeline said. Zavanna blinked in surprise, then shrugged.

"Ah, well, then it all works out, doesn't it?" she said. Reaching in her robe, she pulled out a box. Inside was a spyglass. "Here's the portkey home, on my count, 1, 2…"


End file.
